Business Support

Business Finance

Don’t let a lack of funding hold your business back!

Enterprise Northern Ireland is involved in the delivery of two loan fund products that can help businesses start-up and grow.

Start-Up Loans has been delivered in Northern Ireland since November 2013 and is part of a suite of ideas designed to boost the level of entrepreneurial spirit within the UK and stimulate the growth of our local and national economies.

The success of Start Up Loans lies in the dual approach to supporting early stage businesses, equipping them not just with the finance to start and grow, but also, importantly, the support they require to succeed.

Enterprise Northern Ireland is an official delivery partner of the Start-Up Loans scheme.

The NI Small Business Loan Fund is part of Invest NI’s Access to Finance strategy and was launched in April 2013.

In response to a challenging trading environment and problems in accessing credit faced by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), micro enterprises, and social enterprises in Northern Ireland, Invest NI (Northern Ireland’s Business Development Agency) has recognised that alternative sources of lending to bank finance, such as micro-financing, debt finance, venture capital, technology transfer and business angel funding, have not been widely available in Northern Ireland.

To help address this Invest NI put in place several offerings including the NI Small Business Loan Fund to ensure that Northern Ireland companies are not held back because they cannot access traditional finance.

The Fund is managed and delivered by the partnership of Ulster Community Investments Plc and Enterprise Northern Ireland.